Online gambling to be attached to defense bill???- article Uh oh!!!

[Berge20]

Heh

[MiltonFriedman]

Thanks for the advice. It looks like it is on to the next battle, at a minimum.

I take it the Omnibus spending Bill is like a Christmas tree for orphaned, unpopular legislation ? What is the status today ?

Who are the key people to lobby, in the House and in the Senate ?

Mr. K or Berge ?

[Mr.K]

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks for the advice. It looks like it is on to the next battle, at a minimum.

I take it the Omnibus spending Bill is like a Christmas tree for orphaned, unpopular legislation ? What is the status today ?

Who are the key people to lobby, in the House and in the Senate ?

Mr. K or Berge ?

[/ QUOTE ]

Your focus is in the right place, but you're getting ahead of yourself. Approps won't be going full swing -- at least as far as the omnibus is concerned -- until mid November to early December. If you must, feel free to consult http://appropriations.senate.gov and http://appropriations.house.gov/ for info re: committee members, etc.

The DoD Authorization thing is far from done with, contrary to what some uninformed sources are saying.

[MiltonFriedman]

.... damn, I was afraid you would say that, Mr. K. I should have known better than to rely on the Review Journal.

Anything else we can do at this time ?

[schwza]

[ QUOTE ]
In a lame duck scenario, I think online poker players would fare worse. Frist and Co. would have significantly more time to hammer out a deal. The nexus of Iowa's importance in selecting presidential candidates with Frist's desire to get the GOP nomination with his leadership post in the Senate with his pending retirement with Leach's home state of IA creates a tremendous one-time coming together of events that favor continued pressure for passage right through the end. I hadn't fully realized this until this past weekend. Those are some pretty intense forces, and they should not be taken lightly when combined. Getting good press in IA, and commitments from Congressman to help in 08 is a priority for Frist, and I believe he'll do almost anything to move forward on those fronts . Just my guess -- I don't know him or his plans directly.

[/ QUOTE ]

getting good press in iowa will make him push hard, but shouldn't the desire to get commitments from congressmen have the opposite effect? he should be giving out favors, not cashing them in and stepping on toes.

[daedalus]

[ QUOTE ]
Also, I wonder how Mason's meeting with his attorney went? Any news on that front?

[/ QUOTE ]

Mason said he was going to call his attorney on monday to schedule a meeting. Not that he was actually going to meet on monday.

[MiltonFriedman]

"The nexus of Iowa's importance in selecting presidential candidates with Frist's desire to get the GOP nomination ... with Leach's home state of IA creates a tremendous one-time coming together of events that favor continued pressure for passage right through the end. I hadn't fully realized this until this past weekend. Those are some pretty intense forces, and they should not be taken lightly when combined. Getting good press in IA, and commitments from Congressman to help in 08 is a priority for Frist, and I believe he'll do almost anything to move forward on those fronts."

So, let's create some bad press in Iowa ??

(By the way, I saw zero press in my cursory Iowa searches on this recent "hearing". Maybe the Frist - Leach promise was to push it in the Senate, campaign for Leach in Iowa, as a quid pro quo for 2008 support ? If so, then actual press would not matter for now.)

[kleath]

[ QUOTE ]
Berge and Mr.K,

How can you live in DC with the pugent aroma of [censored] coming from the capitol?

[/ QUOTE ]

We have good broadband coverage on mobile devices.

[xwillience]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Berge and Mr.K,

How can you live in DC with the pugent aroma of [censored] coming from the capitol?

[/ QUOTE ]

We have good broadband coverage on mobile devices.

[/ QUOTE ]


can you imagine what wuld happen if they didnt?


btw, how did DC function without cellphones??

[Nate tha\\\' Great]

[ QUOTE ]
"The nexus of Iowa's importance in selecting presidential candidates with Frist's desire to get the GOP nomination ... with Leach's home state of IA creates a tremendous one-time coming together of events that favor continued pressure for passage right through the end. I hadn't fully realized this until this past weekend. Those are some pretty intense forces, and they should not be taken lightly when combined. Getting good press in IA, and commitments from Congressman to help in 08 is a priority for Frist, and I believe he'll do almost anything to move forward on those fronts."

So, let's create some bad press in Iowa ??

(By the way, I saw zero press in my cursory Iowa searches on this recent "hearing". Maybe the Frist - Leach promise was to push it in the Senate, campaign for Leach in Iowa, as a quid pro quo for 2008 support ? If so, then actual press would not matter for now.)





[/ QUOTE ]

FWIW, Leach's race initially wasn't considered competitive -- he's been elected in that district 15 (!) times -- but the challenger, Dave Loebsack, has apparently had some encouraging poll results and is picking up momentum.

Downside: A more competitive race means that the political stakes are higher. In addition to Senator Frist, who had the internet gambling event with Leach, a number of prominent "presidential" Democrats like Kerry and Biden have made appearances in the state on behalf of the challenger.

Upside: Leach's approval numbers are something like 40-50 against, which might reduce his efficacy as a campaigner for Frist. Also, Jim Leach might be voted out of Congress. ;-) This is not only helpful on its own merits, but also might make Frist less inclined to push for a gambling bill in a lame duck congressional session.

If you want to contribute to Loebsack's campaign, you can do so here.

http://www.loebsackforcongress.org/